Now is the time for fire opt-out

For the past few years, the Custer County Commission and our local volunteer fire departments have struggled with funding or how to fund the departments in the county that are not already funded through fire districts. Some money that was given to the county from the federal government during the Covid-19 pandemic helped shore up some of the departments for a while, but the fact remains they simply do not bring in enough money through the current fire fund mil levy to keep up with the cost of the equipment, training, etc., needed to truly have optimal departments in place.
The voters located in the coverage area of these departments, including the people protected by the Custer Volunteer Fire Department, will have the chance to approve an opt-out of the current fire fund this June. The Custer County Commission, which is in favor of the opt-out, has decided to put the issue to the voters, who we hope will approve the opt-out. We know, the residents of Custer County already pay a great deal of taxes. We get it. But sometimes we have to bite the bullet and pay a little more for the good of the cause. This is one of those instances.
It was mentioned at the recent Fire Advisory Board meeting that the fire departments have to an extent been their own worst enemies. That is because they continue to run fine departments and continue to answer all calls despite being woefully underfunded. The firefighters also in many cases serve as mechanics, and continue to work on older equipment to squeeze as much life out of them as possible. It’s something that simply cannot be sustained for much longer.
Talk to a member of any of the departments and you will hear stories about equipment that is well past its expiration date but is still being utilized out of necessity. An opt-out is not going to solve all of these ills at once, but it will go a long way toward helping begin to solve those problems. Ultimately, like Battle Creek and Fairburn, the rest of the county is going to need to move to a fire district to fund these departments. This opt-out would be a nice bridge to that, providing much-needed funding while the departments work on forming the best district or districts that serves everyone’s needs.
Again, we know that times are tough, and nobody wants to take on more taxes, especially in Custer County, where our taxes are already soaring. But, we also want to protect our homes, those investments for which we are paying a pretty penny on property tax. If we want someone to show up when we call for a fire truck, we are going to have to pay a little more to ensure it happens. If a truck won’t start or there is no one there to answer the call, we will surely regret not taking on those extra tax dollars. That’s not an idle threat. At some point these departments won’t have enough money to operate.
It’s been said before, but pancake feeds are no longer going to fund fire departments. Equipment is expensive and only increasing in cost. We must approve this opt-out for the future of fire protection in our county.